Mortimer worden



M. NORDEN.

RHBOSTAT.

(No Model.)

UNITED STATES PATENT EErcE.

MORTIMER NORDEN, OF NEWT YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO JGSEPI NORDEN, OF SAME PLACE.

RHEOS'TAT..

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 597,470, dated January 18, 1898. Application filed April 12, 1897. Serial No, 631,781. (No model.)

To all. whom t may concer/t: may be more or less numerous, and they are Be it known that I, MORTIMER NORDEN, a placed one behind the other, so that the shafts citizen of the United States, residing at the D E F pass through and are supported bythe city, county, and State of New York, have plates of the rheostats, and these shafts are 5 invented an Improvement in Rheostats, of concentric-that is to say, the shaftsE andF which the following is a specification. are tubular and surround the central shaft This rheostat is especially adapted to use D, and the shafts E and F are shorter than inlighting theaters and otherbuildings where the shaft D, so that the shaft D extends to some of the lights require to be turned on or the rheostat A, the shaft E to the rheostat B, 6o 1o off or to be modified in intensity and where and the shaft F to the rheostat C, and these all of the lights may require to be turned on shafts also pass through the switchboard G. or off simultaneously and either in full force and turn freely in the bearing therein. At or some of them modified in intensity; and the outer ends of the respective shafts the with this object in view l combine with the hand-wheels Il l l are applied, the hand- 15 switchboard and segmental rheostats circuitwheel H being permanently affixed to the cenclosing arms extending out from concentric tral shaft D, the wheel I to the shaft E, and shafts, there being hand Wheels upon the the wheel K to the shaft F, and these wheels outer ends of the concentric shafts at the are advantageously of different diameters,as switchboard and radial bolts or latches for represented, to facilitate access in turning 7o zo connecting the hand-wheel of one shaft to the such wheels.

next shaft, so that two shafts may be moved rlhe contact-arms 3 are to be of any desired together, and by providing these bolts or character, and they are permanently conn latches upon all the hand-wheels except that nected with the inner ends of the respective connected with the central shaft the whole shafts adjacentto the respective rheostats, so 2 5 of the shafts can be turned together forturnas to engage the contacts 2 of the rheostats ing the current on or off at all the rheostats, or as the shafts and arms maybe turned around. either hand-wheel can be disconnected from These contact-arms usually become part of the next shaft, so as only to turn the tubular the electric circuit and require to be insun shaft to which it is permanently connected, lated from the shafts. 8o 3o thus giving facility for turning the current By the devices before described the handy on to any desired circuit or circuits and for wheels can be conveniently turned to nieve modifying the intensity of the current or the the respective contact-arms and bringin more light as desired. or less resistance into the electric circuits or In the drawings, Figurel is a vertical secto cut out or break the circuits entirely, as 35 tion illustrating the present improvement. may be required from time to time in light Fi g. 2 is an elevation showing one of the handing a building by electricity or in performing wheels and the radial bolt with the collar on any other electric operations. the next shaft in section, and Fig. 3 is a sec- Upon the hand-wheels l and K radial bolts tional elevation of one of the rheostats. 4 are mounted, and the ends of these bolts e 9o 4o I have represented three rheostats A B C. engage the perforated or notched collars 5 These may be of any desired character, and upon the shafts D and E, such collars being the contacts 2 upon such rheostats are arpermanently fastened to such shafts, and it ranged in an arc of a circle. l remark that is convenient to mount the bolts e in tubular these rheostats are conveniently made with cases and to provide expansive springs G to 45 the contacts 2, connected by resistance-wires project the bolts into the collars, and by proembedded in a refractory material, so as to viding right-angle bends at the outer ends of avoid risk of iire if the resistancewires of the the bolts and slots in the cases of the bolts rheostat become heated, and the connections the springs will project the bolts into the for the electric circuits are made to the rheocollars when the right-angle ends of the bolts roo 5o stats in any desired manner and do not reare in the slots of the cases; but when such quire further description. These rheostats boltsare drawn outward and the right-angle ends swing over the ends of the cases the bolts Will be held in their retracted positions.

lt Will new be understood that either rheostat can be employed for regulating the elec tric energy in any particular circuit, and when the action of the rhcostat has been adjusted in each circuit the respective hand-Wheels can be bolted to the adjacent collars of the next concentric shafts, so that all the shafts Will turn together in 'turning on or off the electric currents, and that in so doing the ad j ustrnent of the rheostats will not be changed. This is a great convenience, especially where the lights have to be turned on or off by an inexperienced person, and by .withdrau'ing` the proper bolt one rheostat can be adjusted Without varying the adjacent one. it Will be understood that the number of concentric shafts and rheostats can be Varied at pleasure, and it is to be understood that proper insulating material is to be applied to the respective shafts or contact-arms, so that one electric circuit Will be kept entirely separate from another.

l claim as iny invention- 1. The combination With two or incre rheostats having contacts in arcs of circles, of arms and concentric shafts carrying such arins, a switchboard through which the concentric shafts pass and hand-Wheels upon the outer ends of the shafts for adjusting the contact-arms, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination with two or inorc rheostats having contacts in arcs of circles, of

ruis and concentric shafts carrying such arins, a switchboard through which the concentric shafts pass and hand-Wheels upon the eu ter ends of the shafts for adjusting the contact-arms, a bolt upon one hand-wheel and a collar upon the inner concentric shaft for connecting such hand-wheel and causing the two shafts te nieve simultaneously when either hand-wheel is turned, substantially as set forth.

The combination with the rheostats and the contact-arms for the saine, of concentric shafts carrying the arms, a switchboard and hand-Wheels on the outer ends of the concentric shafts, bolts and cases carrying the bolts connected with the hand-wheels, such cases being slotted and the bolts provided with right-angle offsets, collars upon thc concentric shafts receiving the ends of the bolts and springs for actuating such bolts, substantially as set forth.

Signed by inc this 13th day of January, l S07.

MORTlMER NORDEN.

Witnesses:

Guo. T. PINCKNEY, E. E. loHLii. 

